The 18-game schedule is nowhere near a reality. I heard that one or two teams are interested in what the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday the NFL has proposed discussing with the players as part of the CBA talks: an 18-game regular-season schedule, with each player eligible to play a maximum of 16 games. This is not a new idea—it’s been thrown around at league meetings as one idea to expand the inventory and enrich the league’s TV deals for years.

“I can’t see it,” one plugged-in club official told me.

I’ve always thought in an era when the reduction of head trauma is job one in everything the league does, the only way the NFL could even consider 18 games is with teams playing players a maximum of 16 weeks. But the details make it too hard. How would a team divvy up the starts, say, for the starting offensive line? Would they figure the starting tackles should play every week with the starting quarterback, and thus doom the backup in his two games to a run-for-your-life offensive scheme?

The continued pursuit—or the continuing broaching—of an 18-game schedule is such a short-sighted and greedy thing. The NFL paid each team $275 million out of the league share of total revenue in 2018, and teams paid about $215 million annually in player costs (cap plus benefits). After that, teams can reap major raw profits over what they did in local team revenue.

Someone in the NFL seems determined to kill the most golden of geese by pursuing, even in a passing way, this stupid idea. Greed, in this case, is not good.

Fans don’t want 18 games either. I put out a Twitter poll Saturday and Sunday, asking if readers preferred a 16 or 18-game schedule. Of 13,533 voters, 79 percent said 16. Great comment from a Vikings fan, Jason Altland: “If I pay out the nose for decent tickets in Baltimore or New York to see my Vikings, I want to see all the healthy stars play. I don’t want to pay and end up with a [Stefon] Diggs or {Adam] Thielen bye game.”

Pro Football Talk also polled its readers over the weekend about the 16/18-game idea, with more options than I offered … and 62 percent said they favored 16 games—with 8 percent saying they favored 18 with a maximum of 16 games per player per season.

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QuoteDamien Woody@damienwoodyThe NFL should go to 2 preseason games. Most teams go into training camp pretty much knowing who’s making the 53. Teams are scrimmaging each other more so you actually get better tape of players on the fence

Geoff Schwartz@geoffschwartzFor the record I’m strongly against 18 games in any form unless significant concessions are made from the owners, which won’t happen

I’ve been hammering this for years when I can. The idea of “battling for roster spots” in the preseason is greatly exaggerated. Teams know 46-48 spots entering camp.

TheIronman@LFletcher59NFL players are already struggling to make it through a 16 game season, added more games would lead to more short-term and long-term injuries. The owners don’t get that because it’s easy to be tough with someone else’s body. #NFL #18games

Geoff Schwartz@geoffschwartz18 games has always been on the table. I think the 18 games w/players only allowed to play 16 idea was floated to see the reaction to the idea which was universally negative.